Ex-Afghan hostage's assault trial wraps, verdict due in December

The trial of a Canadian man once held hostage with his American wife in Afghanistan and accused of assaulting her following their release came to a close on Thursday, with the judge reserving his decision until December.

Joshua Boyle, 36, was arrested and charged with assault, sexual assault and forcible confinement at the end of 2017 just two months after he and his wife Caitlan Coleman returned to Canada after their five-year hostage ordeal.

He has pleaded not guilty.

In closing arguments, the defense said Boyle is unconventional and unlikeable but truthful, while the prosecution called his testimony fictitious and self-serving.

"He's meticulous, and therefore argumentative. He can be frustrating to the point of being infuriating. He's not easy to like," Defense lawyer Lawrence Greenspon said.

"But he is a person who tells the truth."
Crown co-counsel Meaghan Cunningham added that Boyle believes that "as a husband he has a right to dominate and subjugate his wife."